Weekend of 19th - 21st - Who got the wind?

Another weekend arrives and this time a full complement (well, almost, Nigel is still stuck working in Houston!). Rob returning to the fold.

The fitting out continues and this time we had the hydrovane, hydrogenerator, generator, air-conditioning units and water maker to play with.

The generator is a FischerPanda 8000i, fitted in the transom locker. Starting her up revealed how quiet a machine she is and able to provide all the power we need. The air-conditioning was useful as temperatures outside were a little warm - so we had comfort while watching the TV!

The Inspiration team and Aztec on the electronics have been working hard, and so quite a few additions.

Here is the Nav station and you can see;

Top left, Navtex, with fusion stereo system under, followed by VHF and the SSB Radios. SSB is fitted with a Pactor blue tooth modem and so email is now live. On the right top is the Satellite phone, which proved to work well, still working on the email though…a job for the next trip. At the bottom, the generator controls and 1200 Watt inverter panel. ON the left is the iPad which links to the chart plotters wirelessly….and has a bunch of movies loaded of course!

Below we have the fan in the main cabin (we have two fitted) along with the air conditioning controls. There are a total of three aircon units, one for the main cabin, one for the fore peak and one for the quarter berths. All cabins have fans fitted.

Below is a view of the Port side quarter berth with water maker controls for the unit under the berth.

We tested the unit at berth and found it to work well with 40 - 50 liters per hour freshwater production. There is a taster tap fitted at the galley to ensure good quality water before sending to the water tank.

The all important TV and DVD system…..

Outside the hydrovane looked neat and trials over the weekend showed that it works well and is extremely easy to use, even with the offset. Here is the unit without the wind vane mounted.

The other important kit mounted was the Watt and Sea hydrogenerator, shown below, off its mount. Insiration arranged for a mid mount system to be installed which worked well and fits well under the bathing platform when lowered. In use, we found battery power to be maintained pretty well. We anticipate power usage on the ARC will be about 320 amp hours and the Hydrovane at 8 knots should cover this usage.

So, fully loaded with Kit and crew we set sail early on the Saturday (20th July) to undergo sea trials of kit and crew…

Well, the wind was light and cyclonic, at one point we saw two ships running on the same tacks in the opposite direction! We tried to launch the parasailor, but the winds were so variable that we had to bring it straight back down again!

So we practiced reefing and emergency drills and slowly made our way to the Newtown creek, at least the bay outside where the crew had a refreshing swim, and Rob took the award for the most dramatic dive….I hope you have healed by now Rob! I think the tsunami warning has just gone off in Hawaii…..

The evening we made for Yarmouth harbor where Miss Liz II and the crew made a perfect entrance.  On arrival we tested the water maker (worked well), before heading into town to buy a block at the swindlery, sorry, the Chandlery…

In the evening an indian take away worked well.

Miss Liz II being spruced up at Yarmouth….Rob and Jon trying to look useful…..needs some work..

View from the Harbour wall;

Yarmouth Harbour, Isle of Wight.

Boys working hard on the saturday night……

Sunday arrived and we found that light winds had now moved to no winds. So no rush, we headed for coffee and cakes in the town.  On final departure more reefing practice and then we launched the storm Jib. An odd sight with a bright orange sail on a calm day! This was followed by launching the drogue and practicing steering with the Unit. It gain worked well. So a good run through of all of our safety gear.

Then we let Jon loose in the galley with the new kitchen knife…..a very bad move as he quickly managed to take off the top of his thumb! Well, at least everyone knows where the first aid kit is now!


Jon's thumb…after the blood had stopped flowing..

We arrived safely back at berth on the Sunday afternoon after another 50 NM or so of sailing, the Log now reads over 1000 NM.

That evening the sea water pump for the aircon failed, as had a spreader light so Inspiration are on the case.

The next weekend is August 8th when we set sail for Plymouth, a good initial and final shakedown for the crew and Miss Liz II before we head across the bay of biscay later in August.

Hopefully Inspiration and Aztec will have everything ready by then!

Oh, and did I mention the Gennaker? The furling Elvstrom Gennaker arrived….but with no wind testing was difficult!

July 5th - 6th Training Weekend - The Parasailor arrives


A new weekend and this time Only Chris and Jon as crew….
On arrival it is clear that the fitting out is going well. The hydrovane appeared and looking good on the transom, Satellite phone installation nearly complete - half of the fans fitted and the Microwave in place and working. Highlight for the "Boys" was the TV and stereo system now in and fully functional. Bad news was Jon was the first on with his music collection….it might be a collection, but Chris and I had trouble with the "Music" part of the description!

The aim of this weekend was reefing, man over board and the test sail with the new Parasailor.  Before setting sail we spent an hour on the pontoon practicing man overboard drills and also how would we move an injured crewman from the foredeck to the cabin. We decided that depending on who it was it may be easier just to chuck them overboard……Good news is the processes worked - so we have a plan.

Jon on Day 1……Do we have to get up this early, it's only 9 am!

Chris adopting his "Hugo Boss" pose for the camera.

Why is my cabin so small….Chris checking out the forward storage area.

"Are you sure we're not going to hit it", a common refrain with hundreds of boats out on the Solent.

Reefing was the order of the day, especially as the wind built up to almost 30 Knots at times. Here we have the skipper at the helm…and Chris pretending…..nothing much changes as they get older. A bit like the plastic wheel he used to have in the car…..

Reefing worked well, and with two reefs in we were still moving at 8 knots. Over 10 with one Reef in. Even with the full sail she sailed we'll in 25 Knots of wind….Mind you, from the helm you are  long way up from the water!! Man over board first run went well, so we didn't lose the fender and bucket man imitation…..

"Are you sure we're not going to hit it!"

Jon trying to stay focussed. Note behind him the aerials set up - left to right - Navtex (weather information system), Satellite active antenna, SSB Radio DSC (Digital Selective Calling) receiving aerial.

The real Red Ensign flying proudly.

Testing out the Bimini in Port at the end of the Saturday. Hardest part of the day returning to port and finding another Hanse in our berth. So, we had to raft up with the wind blowing strongly on the beam. Talk three attempts to get along side, one leaving Jon alone on the raft up vessel! Good news, great manouverability meant we didn't hit anything. I would like to think it was good seamanship!

Sunday morning Stuart Anderson from Seateach arrived with the Parasailor. So we cruised up to the Southampton end of Southampton water and we set her up ready to fly. Here we have Stuart getting the Port Sheet and Guy in place. Note the color coding - Red for Port and Green for Starboard…Makes life so easy.

Parasailor launched in 4 knots of wind, with Jon looking on in his "Jean Paul Gaultier" perfume bottle imitation look. He is modeling the extra wide bottle version….

Note the wing on the sail which helps maintain constant pressure on the sail when it meets a gust of wind. Despite the size it was easy to launch and bring down with the snuffer - which can be seen at the top of the sail. Now christened the "wizarding hat", we half expected Harry Potter to appear….

We sailed up to the Solent with the Parachute flying, 2000 square feet of sail. 10 knots of wind, 8 knots through the water, 15 knots of wind, 10.6 Knots through the water. We basically flew past everything on the water…with a sail that is.

Warmer weather despite the clouds. Great way to sail.

Tramp steamer ahoy, interesting view on a Sunday. Chris "Are we going to hit it"…..Noooo…

Again, as the wind picked up to over 25 knots the fun was getting back onto the berth. This time three attempts and Chris doing his best not to step off the yacht….all good fun and the Boat and Crew again performed admirably.

Thanks to Stuart Anderson of Seateach for taking the time to show us the ropes with the Parasailor and Inspiration marine for the continuing fitting out.

Next anticipate trip out 18th - 20th July with Rob also due. Miss Liz II due for completion and handover on the 18th.  Schedule still on for Plymouth and more in August. Watch this space.

Shakeout cruise for Miss Liz II - and the Crew June 28 - 29, 2014

Well, we start a little before that. I arrived at Hamble Point on the 26th, to find work well underway. The generator was in and the air conditioning, although neither were working initially. By the 27th the generator was up and running - and the new Fischer Panda 8000 was impressive by how quiet it was.

The bad news on the 27th related to the Police. They keep a large catamaran at the marina, and its berth lay close to Miss Liz II. They returned from their duties during the afternoon and as they approached I called out in a little alarm "you are a bit close!!!!", to which the reply came "no we have plenty of room!!", followed by a crunch as they hit the transom. Luckily not too much damage done and the guys at Inspiration were insistent they could polish it out…I am not so sure - so we will see…Not a great start!

By the end of the 27th the TV and stereo systems were up and running just in time to welcome the crew that evening.

the Shake down crew war Chris Horton, Jon Rees, Rob Robotham and of course Lucas.

Chris trying to look seaman like…..it didn't last long…

Jon assuming his usual position….

Rob looking suitably pensive….after all it was his first sail!

Lucas with his bucket at the ready! Unused throughout the whole trip I can add…

Leaving the berth on the full tide the team looked professional as we left the dock, tidying the warps and springs like professionals. The bow thruster making light work of the tight berth.

First call was for fuel and we ferry glided in like a professional crew, no incidences….this was starting to become worrying…when would we go wrong! Not yet though as we filled her up and were given chic ices to see us on our way by a very nice harbor lady!  We then departed…..again without incident.

Jon working the sheets as the Captain focusses on direction…

Making good headway. And almost a good Jib Shape…until we noticed that when it was refitted that they had not hauled it up as far as it should be….Soon fixed though. The initial trip was planned to Alderney in the Channel Islands, but a planned south westerly on the Saturday and a North Easterly on the Sunday put paid to that. So alternative port of Weymouth was selected.

Captain looking happy….no more accidents, and sailing well!

Initial wind was a northerly which then throughout the afternoon moved to a South Westerly.  As we passed the needles we headed out on a South Westerly Course before making the course change to take  us all the way to Weymouth. Wind was averaging 15 knots - 20 Knots and speed of the ground a healthy 9 - 10 Knots, again showing the speed capability of Miss Liz II. Giving the crew some practice at reefing we started off with a reef in which we soon shook out.  Even better, the forecast rain never appeared!

Note this time we had a decent ensign, taken from the original Miss Liz, still looks like we need  bigger one! At least the Germans couldn't laugh at us this time!

Arriving at Weymouth, we managed to get a berth on the quayside….Next to a training ship for 14 ear old girls…If that wasn't bad enough they said they needed to leave at 5.30am to catch the tide, and would we mind? Not much we could say :-), so we went for a curry before we watched the World Cup on the new TV, LUXURY!  Good sail and we averaged almost 7 knots for the entire journey…quay to quay.

Next morning we were up at 5am, well, some of us were….Jon and Chris and Lucas managed to unheard the work going on topsides….Easy enough to cast off though and by 5.30 am we were on our way.

Day 2 and the Cap at the helm. Who needs an auto pilot! Great sailing day again with wind initially at 15 Knots but dropping off to <10 through the course of the day. Engine only used to leave and enter the harbors though. Beautiful blue skies!

Rob enjoying the view.

Good sail shape… we are moving!

Chris showing off with some one handed sailing…where is the life jacket?

Rob looking out for pirates…

Ahh, there's the life jacket!

What do you mean it's my shift again?

Speeding past the needles!

Looking good.

Well past the needles, heading through Hurst Passage with the tide.

Don't jump! OK, Lucas, Jump!!

One training point, will we hit another object or not…I think everyone now has the hang of transits after much will we hit it? Who has right of way? questions…questions...

Made berth at Hamble point after 7 hours dead, Just over 7 knot average door to door, average over 8 Knots actual sailing. Again, the crew handled docking like professionals…and given the space we had to get into that is saying a lot!

And then we decided to take some pictures from up the mast. Chris first and looking suitably nervous….

Chris's picture from the second spreaders…Bow first…..

and then stern. About 60 ft up.

Capt. not to be outdone….from 75 ft….

Great view of Fawley power station from up here.

and the Marine training college.

Stern now, where is everyone? Oh … running across the yacht to make the mast swing…Thank you!

Here they are..

Nice view of the Hamble river..

 And Warsash..

Finally some peace, everyone disembarked and headed home…except for the Skipper.  Time to reminisce on the journey and watch the football!

So, summary, shake out went well, very few issues and none that can't be quickly resolved. Crew shade up well and with a little more training will be read to go.  Well done Jon, Chris and Rob…..and not forgetting Lucas…!

Finally, as I write this on July 2nd, just found out that Miss Liz II should be fully ready on July 8th..although we can't get back to then UK for the takeover until the 18th.

Watch this space.